But will the U.S. be leaving, really? By “the U.S.” of course, I refer to the massive number of private military contractors currently “working” in Afghanistan. In 2010, the contractors outnumbered the troops 2-1. By January 2021, there were more than 18,000 contractors in country. More than 3,814 of them have died over there, almost twice the number of U.S. troop casualties. They are almost invisible to the mainstream news media, and are there for the profit: Not just for themselves, but for the companies seeking to cash in on Afghanistan’s vast natural resources.
“But despite periodic reports and series on contractors by ProPublica and others, the mainstream U.S. media does not regularly pay attention to contractors,” reports The Washington Post. “As a result, they’re subject to political manipulation. These dynamics have contributed to what journalist Dexter Filkins has called ‘The Forever War.’ Which means that U.S. contractors could help sustain hostilities in Afghanistan, even after the U.S. pulls out its troops.” - Truthout
Thursday, April 15, 2021
Is the U.S. war in Afghanistan really going to end?
Depends on how you define "end," I guess.
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ReplyDeleteAccording to a January story in Stars & Stripes, many of the "contractors" are not American citizens ... DOD reports that an estimated 7,856 contractors are US citizens while about 4,700 contractors are Afghans hired locally while others are from developing countries such as Uganda and Nepal.
By comparison, roughly half of the contractors in Iraq are US citizens (2,558 out of 4,826).
These contractors cost the taxpayers plenty (in FY2020 it was over $4 billion), so the question is ... will they increase foreign aid to Afghanistan, or will the taxpayers see a savings ?
The key question would be will the US provide foreign aid to perform these tasks the contractors were doing (protecting fixed locations; guarding traveling convoys; providing security escorts; and training police and military personnel.)
ICYMI, Biden wants to change the budgeting process ... which must please Betty McCollum who complained that it was a "gimmick"
https://www.stripes.com/news/middle-east/troop-levels-are-down-but-us-says-over-18-000-contractors-remain-in-afghanistan-1.659040